A promotional image from Metro Theater's production of "The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane."

Metro Theater

St. Louis children’s theater company, Metro Theater, is bringing “The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane” to life on the stage this month at the Missouri History Museum. The play follows the journey of a toy lost from its owner and is based on the book written by Kate Di Camillo, Newberry Award-winning author of “Because of Winn Dixie” and “The Tale of Despereaux.”

St. Louis on the Air host Don Marsh was joined in studio Friday by Julia Flood, artistic director of Metro Theater Company, and Dwayne Hartford, the playwright who adapted “The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane.”

Listen

Listening...

/

17:19

On Friday's St. Louis on the Air, host Don Marsh discussed the Metro Theater Company's latest play "The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane" with playwright Dwayne Hartford and artistic director Julia Flood.

Edward Tulane is a rabbit (think china doll) who is separated from his owner, a little girl who adores him. His journey home takes many twists and turns, and he finds himself constantly faced with new challenges – from the bottom of the ocean to the top of a trash pile.

The cast is composed of four main characters – The Musician, The Traveler, The Man and The Woman—whose specific roles shift throughout the performance. The play’s soundtrack, which was composed by Flood’s brother, underpins pivotal moments during Edward’s journey.

“It’s a beautiful journey,” said Hartford. “It’s sad at times, and it’s joyous at times. It’s just a lovely story.”

Hartford and Flood explained that Edward’s physical journey accompanies his own personal journey to understand the meaning of love and loss.

Because the story originated from a book, it presented some challenges for the playwright and artistic director in adapting it into a play.

“Here is a story where the main character doesn’t talk, doesn’t move,” said Hartford. “In fact it’s very important that the protagonist of this story cannot move at all on his own – he’s a china doll.”

Because the book relies completely on Edward’s thoughts, translating introspective growth into performance required creative solutions from Hartford and Flood.

Despite this difficulty, Hartford said that immediately after reading the last line of the book, he knew that he wanted to turn it into a play.

“It’s the story of the book, but it’s also the story of how we tell each other stories,” Flood said. “So it has this wonderful circular effect of being, of the nature of storytelling.”

Storytelling, Flood explained, connects us to our past, our families, our homes and our communities. Because of this overarching theme, the performance appeals to viewers of all ages, Hartford said.

“I find that if you approach the material from a very sincere place and try to really uncover the truth of it, adults and young people will respond to it,” Flood said.

They acknowledged that differences in life experience may cause adults to interpret some scenes or lines differently than their children do. For this reason, at certain moments throughout the play, the children may be laughing while the adults tear up.

“I think the wonderful job of theater, and it has been for 3,000 years, is to tell stories and to share empathy,” said Hartford.

In “The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane,” Hartford and Flood said they hope to have accomplished both of these goals.

St. Louis on the Air brings you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region. St. Louis on the Air host Don Marsh and producers Mary Edwards, Alex Heuer and Kelly Moffitt give you the information you need to make informed decisions and stay in touch with our diverse and vibrant St. Louis region.

Related Content

A new local organization wants to get the conversation about race and racism started with a group you may not expect: young, white families in St. Louis. We Stories: Raising Big-Hearted Kids is using children’s literature to “create conversation, change and hope in St. Louis” with the aim of making St. Louis more inclusive.

“When I asked her why, she said she was worried that if [Donald] Trump won, I wouldn’t be there to pick her up after school,” Martha said, in Spanish. “I told her, if he wins or not, I’ll be there for you.”

That certainty could wane in January. The president-elect has pledged to deport up to 3 million undocumented immigrants after his inauguration. Martha, who is undocumented, said the election results have heightened her and her family’s fears about deportation.

A new program aimed at promoting early childhood literacy is giving free books to newborns, starting in January.

Through its "Born to Read" program, St. Louis County Library plans to give the new parents of as many as 8,000 babies born at four participating hospitals in 2015 a gift bag, including: a board book, a bath toy, a milestone marker describing where children should be developmentally, instructions on how to get a library card, and a calendar of literacy activities.

Sitting in a hot car can be uncomfortable for adults — but for children it can be deadly. A law Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon signed this month by aims to keep kids from that danger.

The bill, HB 1649, protects individuals from property damage charges when they break into hot cars to save children. The bill stipulates that a person must first contact emergency responders before entering the vehicle. They also must reasonably believe that entering the car is necessary to help the child.